Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

I changed my hair color last week.

And not just "sorta" changed it....I went from bleach-blonde to dark brunette.

I've been struggling with it. It looks great, don't get me wrong, but I feel different...not-the-same. I find myself shirking my face downwards, wearing sun-glasses alot, and trying desperately to read people's reactions.

You see, I haven't quite owned this change yet, because I've been assuming the worst.

Facebook "changed" last week too. It went from a very familiar format, to a more complicated version. And folks have howled. Most are angry.

My son turned 9. He has changed from a little "boy", to a little "man". And I, myself, howled.

All of these changes got me thinking....Am I reacting, to my hair color/Facebook/child growing up, because of the change itself? Or am I reacting from Fear? Fear of an unfamiliar and new path? Fear of What-if's? Fear of the Unknown?

"Reacting" to change, according to Buddha, is the cause of suffering. It's when we knee-jerk react to differences in our lives that pain ensues. Because quite honestly most of our reactions are based on an assumption of an outcome. And most of us assume the worst. It's a really "Human" way to think. It's kept us alive for quite sometime now.

Entering new postures on the mat can bring out the same fear, an assumption of the worst-case scenario. It's interesting to follow our mental-stories when confronted with change. In my own practice, my mental-stories could always be traced back to humiliation, which for me meant death. WOW. What a leap my ego would make! Logically it makes no sense....but that's the beauty of practice. I now see what I didn't before, and can therefore make a choice.

Change is inevitable. We know this, right?

So it behooves us greatly to LOOK at how we may react to change. The mere act of LOOKING, allows for a split-second recognition. Allows us to see that, sometimes? We are responding out of fear, and not reality.

And identifying the Fear itself can sometimes make you laugh.

Would I really DIE because my hair is brown? Because Facebook changed formats? Because my son is growing up? Of course not.

I love to introduce folks to change, on the mat. Practicing change here makes it a little easier to do it out there. But it's not just the change itself...it's looking at how we react to it. That's the fruit. What story is my mind refabricating because I'm different now? What does it lead to? What is this fear based on?

Trying, experimenting, feeling a different type of Yoga will give you a great opportunity to look at your own reactions to change. Most of us are very accustomed to, and quite happy with, Hatha Yoga. Warrior, Triangle, Down Dog....It's familiar. And that's great.

But taking the time to explore your reactions to change on the mat will prepare you for the moments in your life when change hits you...unexpectedly....because it will.

"Most change will hit you blindsided, on some idle Tuesday afternoon...."

Kurt Vonnegut

Come and explore Kundalini Yoga with me, on Saturday September 20th, from 10am-11:30am. It's a type of yoga that strives to open up energy channels in the body through repetitive movements. It's different. It's a change.

And we'll look at how we react to change, from the safety of our mats, and the comfort of community, making the inevitable changes we'll all experience in our lives a little less.....arduous.

"Changes are taking the pace I'm going through."

David Bowie

Namaste,

Megan Sappington